“While it is wise to learn from experience, it is wiser to learn from the mistakes of others”
~ Rick Warren
Whether you’re at the forming stages of a startup or in full growth mode, it is easy to be overwhelmed by the many hats you must wear as a leader/entrepreneur. Sure, you may be passionate about your product or service, but actually running a company can be daunting.
It is said that every successful entrepreneur reads an average of 60 books per year. While that can seem like a lot, consider the many ways in which you can now “read” a book, from audio files, to summaries, to having Google read to you.
To help you out, we lined up a list of books that can help your startup and scale your business efficiently. We find that there are nuggets in each book for even the most experienced leader. Enjoy!
“The Lean Startup” by Eric Ries
Many startups begin under very lean circumstances with little or no capital. In this book, author, Eric Ries, offers lessons to help you operate your startup with minimal resources. He teaches how to leverage human capital and creativity and how to use financial capital to create a “lean” startup efficiently.
“Founders at Work” by Jessica Livingston
What better way to learn about how to run a startup than from icons who have built the greats? Livingston interviews company founders from Apple, Microsoft, PayPal and more to hear about their experiences – the good, the bad and the ugly.
“Leading at the Speed of Growth” by Katherine Catlin and Jana Matthews
Sometimes you’re so deep in growth that you don’t realize the rapid speed at which you’re growing! In this book, the authors provide a guide to handling what they call the three stages of growth: initial, rapid and continuous growth. It features stories from over 500 entrepreneurs which are sure to inspire and teach you all about growth.
“The Startup Owner’s Manual” by Steve Blank
The processes laid out in this book are taught at elite universities. You get the benefit of the great lessons without breaking the bank with hefty tuitions when you read this manual. It takes a systematic approach to illustrate each step of setting up a successful startup business, including actionable steps to take at each phase of the startup process.
“The Hard Thing About Hard Things” by Ben Horowitz
In this witty and insightful book by Ben Horowitz, you get to learn from one of the most highly successful and respected entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley. While the book is primarily focused on tech startups, it still provides much wisdom and learning that cannot be taught in business school.
We hope you are on a path of lifelong learning as you start and grow your business!